MSU's Electric Top Receiver Battle In Season Finale Victory

Going into their season finale against Maryland, which turned out to be a 38-28 victory, Michigan State had two receivers gunning for the top spot, and nobody else was even close.

Nick Marsh led the race by a slim 27 yards before the game, having 577 in total over the year, and Omari Kelly trailed close behind with 550 in the same amount of time.

Marsh and Kelly battled across all four quarters, and the fight for the title of top receiver was electric in every one.

The First Quarter

MSU, Nick Mars — Michigan State's Nick Marsh smiles while warming up before the game against Michigan on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Marsh was able to extend his lead in the first quarter by pummeling his way to a 24-yard gain against the Terrapins, and that was only the first of two targets. Unfortunately, he was not able to make anything of his second target.

However, Kelly had no catches or targets in the first quarter, and he was down by 51 yards after the first 15 minutes.

The Second Quarter

MSU, Omari Kell — Oct 18, 2025; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Michigan State Spartans wide receiver Omari Kelly (1) catches a pass against the Indiana Hoosiers during the first half at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

The second quarter was when the two really began to go back and forth, with Kelly ripping off a massive 46-yard play that set up the Spartans for a field goal.

He had cut the lead down to five yards, and Marsh was only able to add three back on off of two targets for the majority of the quarter.

However, Marsh was able to extend his lead even further by catching a 15 touchdown pass from quarterback Alessio Milivojevic, putting him ahead of Kelly by 23 yards in total.

Marsh added on one more reception for five yards before the end of the half, and his lead was back to its status before the season finale, and he only kept on extending it, being up by 47 yards at the end of the half.

The Third Quarter

Kelly kicked off the second half just as he did in the second quarter by making a big enough chunk play to get a first down, this time getting 11 yards on the play.

Things slowed down for a while as the defense was on the field for the majority of the quarter, but Marsh was still able to strike back with a 14-yard reception.

Marsh was silencing every attempt that Kelly made at the top receiving title, and it stayed that way for the remainder of the third.

By the time the team entered the final quarter of the game, his lead was up to 50 yards in total, and Kelly only had 15 minutes left to shoot his final shot.

The Fourth Quarter

Kelly began doing what he could during the early stages of the fourth quarter, but he ended up losing a yard instead of gaining momentum.

Marsh was then able to hold onto the lead for the rest of the game, surviving an Omari Kelly touchdown just before the game's end to become MSU's top receiver of the year over Kelly after the team's season finale win against Maryland.

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